A word from Doc

It is interesting as I have gone on this journey of life after combat in Vietnam that I have discovered something that happened along the way. Yes, people do experience stress during times of extreme events. These events can and often times be things that affect how we respond to people and other events. For me, survivors guilt was a big one , why did this person die and I didn’t. I did not know enough to help this wounded person make it.
I have also discovered that stress can and will often times produce something else for us, something that is remarkable to me as it happens without us realizing it is happening but is there never-the-less.
We have all heard of post-traumatic stress syndrome. We have studied how human beings deal with and react to extreme stressors they encounter in their lives: war, attack, financial ruin, illness, death. There are thousands of tragedies and crises that can produce extreme stress in human beings. But very few people have actually studied how people respond to stress in a positive way. There is something called post-traumatic growth. You can have amazing personal growth come out of extremely stressful situations. And that’s what I talk to people about. When you face extreme stress you have a couple of options. One positive option is to face that stress, do something and try to deal with that problem in your life. Reappraise your life. Decide that you “have to look at life differently.” It’s the proactive approach.